Jennifer Morey - A Wanted Man

“Did I do what you expected?”

“You did what I hoped.” Penny glanced at Kadin, not having to explain that he’d melted into the kiss right along with her.

“What did you mean by what you said?”

That he didn’t have to worry? That she wasn’t the settling-down type? “Exactly what it sounded like.”

“I wasn’t hitting on you,” he said.

Was he worried he’d somehow encouraged her?

“No, silly, I hit on you. And it worked.” She smiled.

“Penny… I don’t want you to get the wrong idea.”

So professional. She bet he hung on to that like a badge, his ready defense whenever a woman got too close.

“I don’t have the wrong idea. You kissed me back.” Oh, God, was she really doing this? Flirting with fire? This wasn’t ordinary flirting. This was war. She stopped and made him face her. “Look, whatever happens, happens. There are no rules when you’re with me.””

* * *

Be sure to check out the next books in this series.

Cold Case Detectives: Powerful investigations, unexpected passion.

A Wanted Man

Jennifer Morey

www.millsandboon.co.uk

Two-time RITA ®Award nominee and Golden Quill Award winner JENNIFER MOREYwrites single-title contemporary romance and page-turning romantic suspense. She has a geology degree and has managed export programs in compliance with the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) for the aerospace industry. She lives at the feet of the Rocky Mountains in Denver, Colorado, and loves to hear from readers through her website, www.jennifermorey.com, or Facebook.

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For Mom,

who loved a good murder mystery.

Contents

Cover

Introduction “Did I do what you expected?” “You did what I hoped.” Penny glanced at Kadin, not having to explain that he’d melted into the kiss right along with her. “What did you mean by what you said?” That he didn’t have to worry? That she wasn’t the settling-down type? “Exactly what it sounded like.” “I wasn’t hitting on you,” he said. Was he worried he’d somehow encouraged her? “No, silly, I hit on you. And it worked.” She smiled. “Penny… I don’t want you to get the wrong idea.” So professional. She bet he hung on to that like a badge, his ready defense whenever a woman got too close. “I don’t have the wrong idea. You kissed me back.” Oh, God, was she really doing this? Flirting with fire? This wasn’t ordinary flirting. This was war. She stopped and made him face her. “Look, whatever happens, happens. There are no rules when you’re with me.”” * * * Be sure to check out the next books in this series. Cold Case Detectives : Powerful investigations, unexpected passion.

Title Page A Wanted Man Jennifer Morey www.millsandboon.co.uk

About the Author Two-time RITA ® Award nominee and Golden Quill Award winner JENNIFER MOREY writes single-title contemporary romance and page-turning romantic suspense. She has a geology degree and has managed export programs in compliance with the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) for the aerospace industry. She lives at the feet of the Rocky Mountains in Denver, Colorado, and loves to hear from readers through her website, www.jennifermorey.com , or Facebook.

Dedication For Mom, who loved a good murder mystery.

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Chapter 15

Chapter 16

Extract

Copyright

Chapter 1

Penny Darden saw the old, rickety barn through the arch of tree branches and cold nostalgia gripped her. She stopped walking. Tall wildflowers swayed down the center of the curving one-lane dirt road. Beautiful. Picturesque. But full of a secret past.

Growing up on a Midwestern farm, Penny hadn’t escaped fast enough to city life. Metropolitan bike paths and noisy, multilane highways were her thing now. The barn, with its lonely mystery of fading red paint and old, splintering fences, tapped into the girl who’d loved to explore wild, rolling hills and abandoned buildings. She’d long ago left that life—and the girl—behind.

Resuming her walk, she emerged from the trees and spotted a Colonial-style house that stood just as neglected as the barn, door and windows boarded up, just like the farmhouse of her childhood. After her mother sold the place, it had gone to disrepair. She hadn’t understood how lonely her childhood had been until her senior year in high school. That realization had driven her away from Midwestern life.

Jax hadn’t told her there were historic buildings on his property. Maybe half the source of her unwanted curiosity stemmed from that. Her boyfriend had said the only difference between his second home in this remote area of the Wasatch Mountains and his upscale apartment in Salt Lake City was the view. How wrong he’d been.

Reaching the double doors of the weathered barn, she lifted the heavy, awkward latch securing one of the doors and pushed.

Dust particles drifted through the newly disturbed air, sparkling in sunlight. The smell of old hay took her back in time. Old everything. Old wood. Old leather. Old hides. She used to love playing in hay, getting dirty all day and fighting her mother when told to take a shower.

A white pickup truck parked at the far end stopped her short. Partially hidden by stacked hay, it seemed so out of place. She walked to the clean, new vehicle and saw a dent in the driver’s-side door. Peering through the window, she noticed nothing odd except newness and cleanliness. Immaculate cleanliness. She tried the door handle. Locked.

What was a nice truck doing in an old barn like this? Had the previous owner left it? That didn’t seem likely. Why leave a vehicle that was worth something? Maybe the engine blew up. Walking to the front, she saw no plate. Nothing on the back, either. Someone had just dumped it here.

While that struck her as unusual, Penny supposed there must be an explanation. As she turned away, a tack room drew her back to her childhood again. She and her best friend had ridden horses almost every weekend. She fingered an old bridle and then brushed off the dirt that transferred to her skin. Some tools and a few other pieces of tack, all worn with age, kept her in the past until she caught sight of the truck again.

Who were the previous owners? Why had they sold? Had the homestead gone to shambles after the sale or had something happened to force them to leave? She didn’t know how long Jax had owned the place.

Penny walked outside, seeing just a portion of the truck before latching the door. She looked toward the boarded-up house and let another wave of lonely nostalgia sweep her before hiking back up the hill.

Her mother had sold their farm when Penny started college and she moved to an old house in town. Cheboygan. Thinking of her mom only intensified the loneliness that pressed into her.

When had she last seen her mother? Christmas? They hadn’t talked in a while. Penny had gotten so busy with her job, she’d even ignored her mother’s calls. She missed her, of course she missed her. She loved the difference between her life here and her mother’s back in that sleepy northern Michigan town.